A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to roller skates, and more particularly, the present invention relates to battery-powered, remote-controlled, motor-driven, steerable roller skates.
B. Brief Description of the Prior Art
There has been an increasing interest in recent years in providing alternate ways of transportation of people. This is of particular concern in urban areas where the streets have become increasingly crowded with automobiles. The automobile population increase has caused congestion and substantial increases in air and noise pollution. One of the major problems with the use of automobiles is that the amount of fuel consumed in their operation is proportion to their entire weight, that is, the weight of the people and goods being transported as well as the weight of the automobile itself. Where many people and/or much goods are being transported, there is a reasonable relationship between the amount of fuel being consumed, the amount of pollution being created, and the total weight of the material/people being transported. Where a large and heavy car is used to transport a single person, a disproportionate amount of fuel is needed to move the weight of the car as compared to the amount that actually is needed to move the weight of the person and goods in the car.
In recent years there has been an effort to reduce the weight and size of cars and thereby increase their fuel efficiency. There have also been efforts to encourage the use of multiple occupancy vehicles in order to increase the proportion of the weight of passengers and freight to the weight of the vehicle itself.
Public transportation is, of course, one solution to this problem. Many people, however, do not like to use public transportation, and will not if they can use their cars. Further, even where public transportation is used, there is often some distance between the public transportation stop and the ultimate destination of the rider. These deficiencies raise a need for alternative transportation ways.
In other countries, and to a lesser extent here in the United States, bicycles, even motored bicycles known as mopeds have been used to transport people. This is much more efficient from a fuel conservation perspective, but bicycles still take up a fair amount of room on the streets, several times as much room as the person riding the bicycle would take up if that person was walking.
While all of these efforts are admirable, there is still need to provide more efficient transportation, which will reduce the amount of fuel needed per weight of people and goods being transported.
Roller skates are well known. They have been available for many decades. In the older type of skate, four wheels are mounted two each on two axles, one in front of the other. In the newer type of skate, each of the wheels is mounted on its own axle, and all of the wheels are mounted in tandem. This newer roller skate is also referred to as a roller blade.
Roller skates are suitably directly coupled to a shoe as a single integral unit, or they may be made so as to be attachable to a shoe. These configurations are equally adapted to implementation with either the two axle, two wheel per axle, or the roller blade type of arrangement.
It has always been the desire of skaters to go faster. Toward this end, skates have become lighter and their construction has been modified so as to minimize friction. Also, in the past, many attempts have been made to provide auxiliary propelling apparatus for skates.
Many of these auxiliary propelling apparatuses for roller skate have to be carried on the person of the skater, that is on a belt or on the back of the skater in the form of an electric motor or an internal combustion engine. Power transmission between the motor/engine and the skate has often been provided by way of a rigid or a flexible power transmission apparatus, such as a shaft or cable.
It is clearly undesirable for such a motor/engine to be carried on the back or the belt of the skater. The power transmission is too long and therefore too much power is lost in the transmission. Further, and perhaps more importantly, the attitude of the skater does not always coincide with the attitude of the roller skates, which may make for either a very complicated power transmission system, or one which may be subject to interruption when the motor/engine being carried by the skater and the roller skates get too far out of functional alignment.
It is therefore believed that it is more appropriate and efficient to provide a way for driving (powering) roller skates, which is more proximate to the skate itself. This would be less subject to power transmission failure or interruptions because of these attitudinal differences between the skates and the skater.
Electric motors are advantageous in that they start instantaneously, without cranking, and they do not require the skater to carry a flammable, often dangerous, fuel around to feed the motor.
Numerous innovations for motor driven skates, skate boards, and toy cars and skates have been provided in the prior art that will be described below, and which are incorporated herein by reference thereto. Even though these innovations may be suitable for their specific purposes, they each differ in structure and/or operation and/or purpose from the present invention in that they do not teach battery-powered, remote-controlled, motor-driven, steerable roller skates.
(1) U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,592 to Saitoh.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,592 issued to Saitoh on Oct. 23, 1979 in class 46 and subclass 235 teaches a toy car operated by a wireless electric device and includes a car and a wireless electric transmitter in separation. All apparatus including a driving apparatus and a braking apparatus are mounted on a bottom plate of the car. A pair of front wheels of the driving apparatus are mounted on a front axle that is journaled in both sides of an axle support frame. The axle support frame is pivoted on the bottom plate. The braking apparatus includes a receiver, an electromagnet, and a pair of brake disks. A sliding frame is adapted to slide laterally on the axle support frame, and is equipped with the electromagnet having a pair of magnet cores. Each of the brake disks is fixed to each inside surface of the front wheels by a leaf-spring as a buffer. During a time that the receiver is receiving the electric wave from the transmitter, the electromagnet works and either one of the magnet cores that is closer to one of the brake disks sticks to the one brake disk. Therefore, the front wheel is braked and the car runs while turning to the braked side and changing alternately a turning direction by each transmission of the electric wave.
(2) U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,752 to Combs.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,752 issued to Combs on Jul. 11, 1989 in class 446 and subclass 279 teaches a remote controlled rolling skating toy wherein a female figure has formed internally thereof a plurality of batteries for supplying power to a remote control signal receiving device to selectively actuate a plurality of motors positioned in the torso portion of the figure for appropriate and desired weight distribution thereof and wherein a plurality of driven roller chains are positioned through either leg of the figure cooperating with a plurality of tension rollers to drive each of a plurality of roller skates integrally secured to each foot of the associated figure.
(3) U.S. Pat. No. 5,236,058 to Yamet et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,236,058 issued to Yamet et al. on Aug. 17, 1995 in class 180 and subclass 181 teaches a combination of a conventional roller skate having a platform supporting the skater and axles/wheels below the supporting platform that are mounted in rotational relationship to the platform and a motor is adapted to drive the wheels. In this combination, there is provided a braking system that is operatively associated with the wheels and/or axles and which is operated by hingedly depressing a forward portion of the support platform by way of the forward portion of the skater's foot, such as the toes. Depressing the forward portion of the support platform forces a braking apparatus into effective stopping contact with the wheels. There is further provided apparatus to start the motor, which is associated with the skate. In this embodiment, an auxiliary wheel is provided rearwardly of the skate and out of contact with the surface on which the skate wheels bear. The skater starts skating in a conventional manner, and when enough speed has been achieved, the skate is pivoted about the rear wheels to cause the auxiliary wheel to contact the surface on which the conventional wheels bear. This contact turns the auxiliary wheel, which jump starts the motor.
(4) U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,026 to Hsu et al.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,026 issued to Hsu et al. on Jul. 19, 1994 in class 180 and subclass 181 teaches a remote controlled electric skate-board having a motor to drive two sets of sun and planet gear units connected with a pair of rollers rotated to move the skate-board by a remote controller transmitting a signal to an electronic circuit carried on the board to start or to stop the motor so that the skate-board may be moved or stopped by electric power in addition to human force.
(5) U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,873 to Ishimoto.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,722,873 issued to Ishimoto on Mar. 3, 1998 in class 446 and subclass 456 teaches a steering system provided on a chassis of a toy car. A rotatable steering plate is rotatably provided on the chassis so as to rotate in a horizontal plane by a predetermined maximum angle toward left and right directions from a longitudinal center axis of the chassis. A spring member is provided on the chassis and mechanically connected to the rotatable steering plate at a position spaced-apart from the longitudinal center axis of the chassis for forcing the rotatable steering plate to rotate and tilt toward one of the left and right directions from the longitudinal center axis of the chassis. A steering motor is provided on the chassis for generating a rotation power, and has a motor shaft. A rotary shaft is provided on the chassis. A transmission system mechanically connects the motor shaft and the rotary shaft for transmitting the rotation power generated by the steering motor into the rotary shaft. A first wheel is so mechanically connected to a first end of the rotary shaft that the first wheel is allowed to rotate freely from the rotary shaft. A second wheel is mechanically connected to a second end of the rotary shaft. The second wheel has a clutch mechanism so operating that if the steering motor is driven, then the rotation power is transmitted to the second wheel and thus the second wheel is driven, whereby the rotatable steering plate is forced to direct in parallel to the longitudinal center axis of the chassis. If, however, the steering motor is not driven, then the rotation power generated by the steering motor is not transmitted to the second wheel and thus the second wheel is not driven and does not rotate or rotates by inertia freely from the rotary shaft, whereby the rotatable steering plate is forced to rotate and tilt toward the one of the left and right directions from the longitudinal center axis of the chassis.
(6) U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,466 to Gendle.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,466 issued to Gendle on Aug. 25, 1998 in class 180 and subclass 181 teaches a powered skate having a small motor mounted on an in-line roller blade with a hand-held throttle. The motor, such as a small internal combustion engine, is mounted at the rear of an in-line skate having a frame secured to a user's shoe or boot and drives the rear roller via a reduction gear train that may include a clutch assembly. The engine is started by a pull cord, and the engine speed is controlled by a hand-held control unit attached to the engine via a throttle cable that may be secured to the user's body via arm and leg straps. The powered in-line skate and a non-powered in-line skate can safely drive a user to speeds of about 20 MPH, this providing alternate transportation for the user.
(7) U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,543 to Diaz.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,543 issued to Diaz on Nov. 3, 1998 in class 180 and subclass 181 teaches a motorized in-line blade roller skate having a longitudinally extending chassis plate with rear and front ends and several in-line blade roller members. A motor provides the necessary rotational movement that is transmitted through a cable to a gear assembly that in turn transmits it to a driving roller member. A bracket member is pivotally mounted to the rear end of the chassis plate, and the driving roller member is rotatably mounted to the bracket. A clutch cable brings the driving roller member in contact with the rearmost roller member and thus transmits the rotational movement to the latter. A second pivotally mounted bracket is provided for rotatably supporting the rear roller and which is rigidly kept in place with an adjustable linkage member. Adjusting this linkage member offsets the wear and tear of the rear or driven roller and also permits a user to enhance gripping, preventing slip action, by bringing the rear roller member slightly below the plane defined by the other roller members.
(8) United States Patent Application Publication Number 2003/0214103 to Walker.
United States Patent Application Publication Number 2003/0214103 published to Walker on Nov. 20, 2003 in class 280 and subclass 11.203 teaches a handheld radio controlled transmitter communicating with an electrical circuit board on each skate. The electrical circuit controls one battery powered DC motor linear actuator driven hydraulic pump. The hydraulic pressure created from the hydraulic pump is directly related to how much electrical current is consumed by the DC motor. The electrical current is monitored, and the DC motor will move forward creating hydraulic pressure or move in reverse removing pressure. The hydraulic pressure depends on how far down or up the transmitter button is pressed. The hydraulic pump is connected to a lead screw and master piston. The hydraulic fluid travels from the master cylinder through tubing to a pair of slave cylinders on each wheel. The slave cylinders press against the disc brake pads that press against the in-line wheel hub when the skater needs to slow or stop.
(9) United States Patent Application Publication Number 2004/0163867 to Hillman.
United States Patent Application Publication Number 2004/0163867 published to Hillman on Aug. 26, 2004 in class 180 and subclass 180 teaches a vehicle for transporting a rider, including a platform for supporting the rider and at least one skate truck coupled to the platform and including a housing. An axle included in the skate truck extends through the housing to support a wheel having a rotational relationship with both the housing and the platform. Motive power rotates the wheel relative to the platform. A free-wheel bearing includes first portions coupled to the wheel and second portions coupled to the motive power. The second portions of the bearing have a fixed relationship with the first portions of the bearing when rotated in a first relative direction, and have a free-wheeling relationship with the first portions of the bearing when rotated in a second relative direction opposite to the first relative direction. When the motive power includes a motor, portions of the platform can be adapted to receive a battery.
It is apparent that numerous innovations for motor driven skates, skate boards, and toy cars and skates have been provided in the prior art that are adapted to be used. Furthermore, even though these innovations may be suitable for the specific individual purposes to which they address, they would not be suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described, namely, battery-powered, remote-controlled, motor-driven, steerable roller skates.